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New York Comic-Con 2011

FUNimation Panel

by Todd Ciolek, Oct 14th 2011

FUNimation saved their biggest news for the end of their New York Comic Con panel. Already the dominant force in North America's anime scene, FUNimation kicked off a new partnership with Niconico, the English offshoot of Japan's highly popular streaming video site. The new venture, called Funico, aims to provided quick streaming of the latest anime series fresh from Japanese airwaves, and it's the largest such attempt at simulcasting anime yet.

FUNimation had particularly high praise for Guilty Crown, the new series from writers Ichirou Okouchi and Hiroyuki Yoshino (both veterans of Code Geass) and director Tetsuro Araki (Death Note). In an arrangement not unlike Code Geass, Guilty Crow is set in a future where a plague-ravaged Japan is dominated by an international cabal called the GHQ. Teenager Shu Ohma ends up at the heart of a rebellion when he acquires the power to extract weapons from humans.

Guilty Crown's similarities to past series were not overlooked at the panel, where FUNimation marketing manager Adam Sheehan described the show as “Code Geass meets Ghost in the Shell.” Viewers will be able to compare the show quite easily; in addition to the currently streaming debut, the first two episodes will be screened at the New York Comic-Con, and a DVD and BluRay release is planned in 2012.

In yet another license rescue, FUNimation landed the Fafner TV series and movie. A mecha-action series in which teen-piloted robots defend an enigmatic island from creatures, Fafner featured scripts by Tou Ubukata during the second half of its 25-episode run. The film, Heaven and Earth, is set two years after the events of the series. Geneon Entertainment released the Fafner TV series in North America, but FUNimation's license marks the first time the film will be available over here. Both the TV series and movie will arrive in 2012.

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Voice actor/director/professional Dungeons & Dragons player Liam O'Brien returns to the podcast after a 5-year hiatus to discuss his roles in Fate/Zero and Sailor Moon, along with the landscape for anime voice acting now and what it's like to be Gollum.― ANNCast Episode 234: Podcastoes O'Brien Get the Flash Player to see this player. Voice actor/director/professional Dungeons & Dragons player Liam ...

If you went to an anime convention this summer or have used the internet lately, you may notice anime fans seem to have fallen in love with Steven Universe. Why? Because the show loves them right back.― If you've been to an anime convention in the past year, you've probably seen colorful, gem-studded cosplay like this filling the hallways. Photo credit links: top left, top right, bottom left, bottom...

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Egypt Arc is JoJo in peak condition, as memorable and engaging an adventure as you could hope for. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is back.― When we last left our heroes, they'd just arrived on the shores of Egypt, escaping the literal jaws of defeat in order to finally save Jotaro's mother. The journey there had been a lengthy and sometimes inconsistent one, with their various adventures indeed being plen...

The creator of the hit manga, recently adapted into a popular anime series, talks about her inspirations, how she got her start, and what it's like to watch your manga become a TV show.― As you might guess from the story, the main character of the story is a high school roughneck named Ryu Yamada. Yamada meets cute, quiet, and studious Urara Shiraishi, who is his complete opposite in almost every wa...